Epiphany

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belon to their respective owners.

A/N-thank you very much to everyone who kindly read and reviewed the last chapter.

Chapter Sixteen-The Truth Comes Out

Bella stood frozen on the doorstep as Jacob went back inside the house and went up the stairs. He moved so stealthily that Charlie was unaware that he had even passed. He was back before Bella had a chance to have a full-on panic attack.

As soon as he saw the fear in her eyes, he put his arm around her waist and drew her closer to him. "Its going to be alright, Bells."

"Victoria?" Bella's face paled as her mind immediately conjured up the worst-case scenario.

"Its not a scent I recognise."

In the grip of silent panic, Bella's heart began to race as she considered the only other possibility. If it wasn't Victoria or one of the Cullens, that only left the Volturi. She could feel the panic building like an unstoppable snowball in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't concentrate, couldn't think straight. Bella felt trapped between two evils, with no chance of escape. The fact that the unknown vampire must have been in the house while she and Charlie were sleeping was terrifying. Edward certainly hadn't detected anything before she had sent him packing. Perspiration broke out on her skin and her heart felt like it was going to explode.

Jacob could literally smell Bella's fear as well as sense it. He put his arms around her carefully. His embrace was warm, and his big, strong arms seemed very protective when wrapped around her frail body. The world around Bella melted away as she squeezed him back, not wanting to ever leave the security of his embrace.

"I'll never let anything happen to you, Bells. I promise. You don't have to be afraid." Jacob promised as he kissed the top of her head.

Bella strained her vocals but nothing came out. She looked up at him in despair, knowing that she was finally going to have to fill in the missing gaps about what had happened in Italy. She couldn't live in denial anymore. Suddenly, Bella's body wracked with raw sobs and she shook like a leaf. Fright consumed every cell in her body, swelling them with terror. With every second she practically felt the rise of her blood pressure, but she knew that this was the least of her worries.

"Jake, there's something I have to tell you…" She choked out.

"What is it?" Jacob's tone was full of concern for her which just made Bella feel even worse for keeping the full truth from him in the first place.

Before she had a chance to open her mouth again, they were interrupted by Charlie who had brought Jacob his soda. "What are you both doing out here?" His expression abruptly changed when he saw Jacob's arms around his daughter. He grinned. "Don't let me interrupt."

Bella quickly buried her face against Jacob's chest so Charlie wouldn't see how distraught she was. Jacob began to make casual conversation with her father and Bella envied his ability to act so calm in the middle of a crisis. She knew he was doing it for her benefit, he was keeping Charlie engaged until she had time to compose herself.

After a few minutes had passed, Bella had just about managed to get her facial expressions under control when she felt Jacob tense, then a second later she heard Charlie mutter an oath under his breath. There was only one person who could invoke that reaction from both men. Feeling her panic beginning to rise again, Bella slowly raised her head from where it had been anchored against Jacob's chest, only to have her worst fears confirmed when she heard the sound of Edward's car racing down the street. The Volvo's brakes protested loudly as he slammed to a stop outside the front of the house.

Tension grew in Bella's face and limbs at Edward's unexpected arrival. She caught a brief glimpse of the anger and betrayal on his face at seeing her in Jacob's arms, before he quickly smoothed his features into an impassive expression. Jacob, on the other hand, wasn't hiding his animosity. The usual warmth was missing from his eyes and the slight tremor in his body warned Bella that he was on the verge of losing his cool completely. To have a strange vampire roaming around the house was one thing, being confronted with another so soon after was testing his limits of self-control.

Thankfully, Charlie stepped in and took control of the situation when he noted the look on Jacob's face. "I don't want any fighting, do you understand me, boy?" He looked only at Edward as he spoke. "I can go get my badge if that makes my order more official."

"That won't be necessary, Charlie." Edward answered in a restrained tone.

"That's Chief Swan to you." Charlie reminded him sharply.

Edward's jaw pulsed with irritation. "I apologise, Chief Swan. I've just come to pick up Bella."

"You are not taking my daughter anywhere. You understand? I will not have you trying to weasel your way back into her affections. She dumped you flat. Just accept it. Now clear off before I arrest you for speeding. I saw the way you came flying down the street."

While Charlie continued to unleash hell on Edward, Bella found herself under the spotlight. Surprise was etched all over Jacob's face as he took a minute to absorb the truth bomb that her father had just dropped. "Is that true, Bells? Did you break up with him?"

Bella's thoughts began accelerating inside her head. She wanted them to slow so she could breathe but they wouldn't. "Last night…I told him…I…"

Charlie was yelling now, completely drowning out Bella's timid voice as he let out all of his pent-up fury on the boy who had emotionally abused his daughter. "And if you don't stop hassling her, I'll take out a restraining order against you. That won't look too good on your precious college applications…."

Her father's voice became background noise again as she became swept up in the look on Jacob's face. Bella tilted her head slightly and without thinking Jacob tucked a lock of her shiny brunette hair behind her ear. "What did you tell him last night, Bella?" He prompted her.

Bella was finally able to find her voice again and suddenly she was talking. Talking like she didn't have enough time to say what she needed to. Her words were crowded together and some were missing. Her sentences came out fragmented and her thoughts seemed to jump from one thing to another. All her fears came tumbling out unchecked by her brain, like she was in some kind of mental free-fall, unable to analyse things or assess risk. "I told him I wished he'd never come back…and he didn't believe me…but I meant it. I meant every word…" She choked out. "I told him I would never…forgive him for the promise I was forced to make in Italy."

Jacob was trying to get her to slow down. "Promise? What promise?"

"Don't hate me, Jacob." Bella pleaded.

Jacob tried to soothe her frazzled nerves but his words were bouncing off her like they were hard rain. Bella's fingers were white-knuckled, holding onto his shirt and begging him to forgive her. Jacob told her yes, even though he wasn't sure what he was forgiving her for. He told her over and over, stroking her back and planting kisses on her face to try and calm her down.

Bella's head was a carousel of fears spinning out of control, each one pushing her mind into blackness. Every horror she had lived through in Italy was replaying in her mind. Sounds that were near felt far away, like she was no longer in the body that stood paralyzed in Jacob's arms. The constant strain and effort of keeping everything inside was too much. It all came out, like molten lava from an erupting volcano. She wasn't in control of anything in her life, including what came out of her mouth.

Right within earshot of Charlie, including a horrified Edward, Bella told Jacob that the Volturi had only let them go after extracting a promise that she would be turned into a vampire.

A/N-thanks for reading! I'm sorry it's only a short chapter. But what a cliff hanger, LOL